Topic: How to Deal with a Fraudulent Rental Management Company?

How to Deal with a Fraudulent Rental Management Company?

Back in January, the rental management company that services the coop building I rent in called and left a notice stating that “They had not received my rent payments for November, December, and January” and that if I did not pay by COB the next day, they would file a complaint for eviction in court. I panicked, and presumed the company was being truthful (or was at least competent enough to keep basic accounting records). At their request, I had also been paying via Cashier’s Checks, so I wouldn’t have known immediately whether the checks were not cashed. So, I paid them immediately and checked with the bank afterwards (yes, I know). Sure enough, the checks had been cashed, and my local bank manager provided me with copies of the cashed checks. The rental management company’s information was on the back and it does not appear to be a forgery. The copy also shows the account number and the manager confirmed it was an account owned by this company (they bank at the same bank).
After weeks of phone calls, emails the rental company still has not credited my account for paying double rent for 3 months. My question is, do I have a cause of action under DC landlord-tenant regulations? Must I go to small claims? I have 0 desire to go to court, but holy cow, that’s 3 month’s worth of rent. Any other thoughts?
Lest it not be clear from the tone of my post, yes, lesson learned.

You have no desire to go to court with a company that stole three months rent? How else do you plan on getting your money back? Anyways, you should call the DC Office of the Tenant Advocate. They’ll help you sort out your options. http://ota.dc.gov/. Good luck!